“I like that nickname [Petrovoz].”
Djordje Petrovic had to fill Matt Turner’s shoes in more ways than one when joining the New England Revolution.
Of course, on the field, Petrovic has excelled replacing the USMNT goalkeeper. He has recorded seven clean sheets in just 16 games. The 22-year-old also has 64 saves and has a goals against average of 1.19. For his efforts, Petrovic has made MLS’ Team of the Week six times since coming to the United States.
But Turner also was loved by the fans. He was nicknamed the “Turner Train” with the Revolution Recap podcast making many a meme about the goalkeeper.
Fans were quick to come up with a nickname for Petrovic with Ben Saufley coming up with Petrovoz with “Voz” meaning train in Serbian. Petrovic gave his thoughts on the nickname and the overall support he has received from Revolution fans on Thursday.
“I like that nickname [Petrovoz],” he said. “It’s good because of the fans and the atmosphere. But, I already had a nickname when I was in Serbia, they called me Petro. So for me, that nickname is nothing new, but I do like it and enjoy the support from the fans.”
The Petrovoz is just beginning its ascent of MLS and the soccer world as a whole. Being so young, Petrovic has plenty of time to grow as a goalkeeper, and Bruce Arena expects him to do just that.
“Well [Djordje Petrović’s] going to be a lot better,” Arena said. “Experience is critically important for goalkeepers. They generally reach their prime a lot later than field players, as we know. Probably around 30 years old, so when you think about that, at 22 years old, he is in a pretty good position. He’s going to get much better. What more can we say? He is a real good one.”
But while this is the tip of the iceberg for Petrovic he has quickly become a fan favorite in New England and will continue to be however long or short his time in a Revolution uniform is before possibly returning to European soccer.